The four men running for Indiana secretary of state debate at IUSB.

The four men running for Indiana secretary of state debate at IUSB.

September 27, 2006|MARY KATE MALONE Tribune Staff Writer

SOUTH BEND -- The four candidates running for Indiana secretary of state agree that voting procedures in the state should be examined and improved -- but just how to achieve those ends was a point of contention at an Indiana University South Bend forum Tuesday. Incumbent Republican Todd Rokita, Democrat Joe Pearson, Libertarian Mike Kole and Green Party candidate Bill Stant fielded questions from a panel of local media representatives in the Student Activities Center at IUSB. Jim Wensits from the South Bend Tribune, political columnist Jack Colwell and Beth Graham from WVPE public radio station asked the candidates to clarify their positions on issues such as minor candidate ballot access, gerrymandering, Indiana's new photo identification law and what state office should oversee the Bureau of Motor Vehicles. Speaking before a crowd of about 75 people, Pearson pushed his plan to make every vote count, "regardless of your age, race or economic status," while Kole focused on the need for a "wide open" election system that would allow easier access for minor party candidates. Rokita defended his work during the last four years, and promised to "cut the red tape" to make Indiana more inviting for business while Stant put forward key platforms of the Green Party. Stant explained the need for easier ballot access for minor party candidates. Under current Indiana law, a candidate from a minor party must gather signatures from 2 percent of voters in the latest election. For the 2006 race, that number totaled about 29,544. Stant and Kole want that percentage brought down to half of 1 percent, or about 7,500 signatures -- a threshold Stant would have easily surpassed this fall with the 20,000 signatures he gathered. Rokita, on the other hand, didn't see the urgency in changing the current structure of ballot access. Both Pearson and Kole said they were in favor of placing the Bureau of Motor Vehicles, currently overseen by the governor's office, under the secretary of state. But Rokita and Stant denounced the idea of moving the BMV, claiming the switch would not help with election reform and only "switch pictures on the wall," Rokita said. Indiana's new voter identification system, one of the cornerstones of Rokita's term, was also a point of contention. Kole praised the new law -- which requires voters to present a government-issued photo identification card before voting -- "as a step toward integrity." But Stant said the best way to reform elections is to "make it easier to vote" and this measure, he said, only makes it harder. "I think it's discriminatory, whatever the intentions of the framers of the law," Stant said. Pearson supported the law, but said the "unintended consequences" of it, like certain groups being turned away at the voting booths, needed to be addressed. Rokita said no one was turned away at the booths, some people just might not have tried. The candidates will face off on Nov. 7.